Automating Business Processes @ CERN Automatisation des processus d’opération Automatisation des processus d’activité Automatisation des processus commerciaux Jurgen De Jonghe, GS-AIS CERN Based on a presentation from Nicolas Décrevel, Rostislav Titov

CERN 2500 Staff 8000 visiting scientists 500 universities 80 nationalities Half the world’s particle physicists This presentation is about automating business processes in CERN. But before we start we’d like to remind what is CERN. … Staff: Titulaire

Best of breed vs integrated suite Needs Package Needs Needs Needs Package Needs Needs Needs Package Interfaces Needs Needs Needs Needs Package Interfaces Missing Not needed CERN Choice: Best of Breed Buy best solution for each business unit We manage the integration & customizations We provide transparent layer for end-users One of the corner stones of the AIS project was a selection of a set of commercial applications. Two approaches basically exist here: either purchase an integrated business suite (e.g. SAP or Oracle) or choose “best of breed” applications in each of business areas. In view of the relatively limited commercial availability of reliable integrated applications suites covering the range of business functions to be treated it was decided to select BEST OF BREED commercial applications per functional area depending on their fit to user requirements (obtained from functional detailed area analysis and cost effectiveness. The commercial applications selected were the most cost effective obtained in the market place with the best fit to the user requirements. This resulted in installing, modifying and maintaining software with four major applications suppliers. We established first class relations with three of these and had problems with one due to the instability of the company. We believe best of breed was a key success factor in meeting our objectives. At the outset of the project there were no viable integrated MIS applications suites meeting our requirements, although several commercial integrated suites of applications became available in the 90’s. Our conclusion, based on cost/effectiveness, ease of installation and maintenance, integration with in-house applications, complexity and best fit to our detailed area analysis is that best of breed remains, by a significant margin, the best choice for CERN. The biggest challenge in the “best of breed” approach is integrating commercial applications together. We have successfully solved this task using a single database vendor (Oracle) and creating a Foundation application which contains reference data from all commercial and in-house applications.

Best of Breed Applications Finance/Purchasing Qualiac Qualiac finance General ledger Accounts Payable Accounts Receivable (Team invoicing) Qualiac purchasing Contracts Purchase order management Goods reception 145 active users 720’000 accounting entries, 35’000 purchase orders, 47’000 invoices, 14’000 team invoices per year; For the Finance/Purchasing area we’ve chosen a commercial package called Qualiac from a French company.

Best of Breed Applications Logistics BAAN Stores management, Replenishment, Sales 50 registered users 55’000 sales orders/146’000 order lines per year 6’500 purchase orders/22’000 order lines per year

Best of Breed Applications HR Oracle HR 115 registered users, 50'000 database operations on 5'500 personal files per month 150’000 persons registered in database E-recruitment HR*Access: Payroll: 3’800 salaries per month

In-house development Where market availability doesn’t meet CERN needs AND there is a strong business case Examples Workflow and electronic document handling HR & Financial Reporting Contract Management Activity Planning & Collaborative project management EVM: Earned Value Management (Maintenance) Intervention Management Planning & Safety 80% commercial, 20% - in-house

Overview of applications Here is a simplified view of our administrative applications. The left part contains data-entry applications, represented mostly by commercial packages. The right part contains data-retrieval (reporting) applications developed in line (HRT for human-resource reporting and CET for financial reporting). Our business process management tool, EDH, which will be covered in detail later in this presentation is located in the middle since it is used both for data entry and data retrieval. The central part of the picture is the Foundation application developed in-house. This is the central repository for all reference data, coming from all our applications, both commercial and in-house. Foundation acts as an integration layer between all our applications. It contains information about persons, suppliers, offices and so on and so forth.

Electronic Document Handling @ CERN EDH So let’s now see in details our business process management tool which is called EDH. EDH stands for Electronic Document Handling, our internal electronic forms processing system. This tool was developed at CERN as a key component of the AIS project, which aimed to provide cost effective user-friendly solutions for reducing administrative overheads throughout the organization. From leave requests to purchase requisitions, over 100 different forms were in use at CERN. These were filled in manually, retyped, approved, signed, and finally retyped again into the appropriate system - not the most efficient way of doing things. EDH's objective was to replace these paper based business procedures with streamlined electronic workflow, validating data against corporate databases and automatically generating the end-result with minimum human intervention. The first implementation of EDH, launched in 1992, ran on CERN's central mainframe computer. Soon after, as central computing gave way to distributed computing, this was replaced by a client-server version, with everyone at CERN having an EDH application on their desktop. In 1998, as CERN moved towards becoming the world's first truly global laboratory, EDH moved to the Web - itself invented and developed at CERN in the early 1990s. Electronic Document Handling @ CERN

Electronic Document Handling Self-Service Requests: creation, validation, routing, authorization and archiving Automates most CERN business-processes 1st version in 1992, Web-based since 1998 Currently EDH covers 64 official procedures in all areas of its activity: HR, Training, Leaves, Safety, Purchasing and Logistics. CERN employees start using EDH from the first moment they start working at CERN (even before, since post opening and hiring process is also supported by EDH) and continue to use this too until end of their contract. One of the important business areas covered by EDH is of course purchasing. There are currently over 14’000 EDH users and about 250000 documents are created every year (about quarter of them are purchases from external suppliers or from the internal stores). The EDH server handles document creation, routing, authorization, and subsequent archiving. Workflows in EDH are human-centric, their main goal is collecting approvals in the most efficient way.

Purchasing through EDH Demande d’Achat Interne Purchase from any external supplier ~35% of all purchases Demande de Matériel Purchase from CERN Stores (>50’000 items) Purchase from selected suppliers via B2B (Business-to-business) scheme EDH supports two types of purchase orders: “DAI” and “MAG”. DAI has been the first electronic document in CERN (first appeared in 1992). MAG was initially developed to purchase goods from the internal stores (which currently contains over 50’000 of most frequently used at CERN items – from pens and portables to gas, metal and chemical products; the stores catalog is also a part of EDH and is available online). MAG was then expanded to handle orders to the biggest CERN suppliers via “business-to-business” mechanism.

Paper Purchase Order In the past CERN had an entirely paper based administration – with it’s inherent problems when information has to copied by hand from the form – to the various purchasing system. Here is a typical example of what can go wrong in such a system; here the item numbers were mistaken for quantity, which meant that six books were delivered – instead of three! Those papers has long since been replaced by electronic forms – similar to shown here. Persons can fill the form online on the Web and the system makes sure that all entered data is valid and that no required information is missing. In case the user does not remember some information (such as supplier name) EDH search screens to help them.

Purchasing Process Support Accounting Reception Request Transfer Purchasing Commande (EDH) Authorisation Payment $ Approbation d'une réception (EDH) Invoice Order Here is the detailed view of the purchasing process at CERN. It is initiated by a user, who creates a purchase order in EDH. EDH collects all necessary authorisations and once the order is fully approved it is automatically transferred to the Qualiac purchasing system. The order is then sent to the supplier. For large amounts this process involves handling by purchase officers, while small orders (<1000 CHF) are sent to the supplier by fax without any intervention from the FP department. The supplier sends the goods and the invoice. The invoices are automatically scanned and recognised and integrated using ReadSoft software. For most of purchases, a new Reception Approval document is launched in EDH automatically so that the requestor can confirm that he really received the goods, the invoice is automatically attached to the Reception Approval. Once the requestor confirms via EDH reception of goods a payment to the supplier happens.

Demande de Matériel Another purchasing procedure supported by EDH is Material Request, which was initially developed to purchase items from CERN central stores. The Material Request looks like this. It contains the general information, where purchaser can enter the budget code to use, the delivery location and other relevant information, as well as the list of items to order. Those items can be ordered either from CERN stores or from online catalogues of the six most used CERN suppliers: Farnell, Radiospares, Bossard, SFS, Lyreco and Distrelec. Clicking on a supplier’s logo opens a B2B “puch-out” session. The user is redirected the supplier’s catalogue. Through the punch-out session the supplier’s catalogue knows that the request came from CERN so that user does not have to authenticate himself and the catalogue automatically shows CERN preferential prices. The user does shopping as usual and then when he (or she) clicks the “Checkout” button, the purchased items are automatically inserted into EDH. Naturally, later the user may click the “Edit” button which will bring him back to the catalogue shopping basket where he/she can modify his purchase. One MAG can contain multiple items purchased from different suppliers. Material requests are processed not by Qualiac but by our logistics system, BAAN, which handles the stores management.

Workflow in Action The best way to illustrate this is with an example: Suppose we have a physicist in Helsinki who intends to come to CERN: From his office in Finland he can call up CERN web-catalogue and order the items he needs.

Workflow in Action Create a ‘Materials Request Document’ (which we will cover in detail a bit later) – adjust the quantities, and click the Send button:

Workflow in Action This launches a ‘Workflow’ process back on our server in Geneva – were the system then determines who is needed to approve this document. In this case we need someone to approve a purchase for up to 2000 Swiss Francs.

Workflow in Action ******** Unfortunately, this person is absent – skiing in the Alps! But that’s OK – since EDH also manages the leave information – it already knows this – so without delay it can pick their replacement – her boss in a university in Athens. She can call up the Materials Request, and if she agrees to the content, enter her electronic signature to approve the document.

  Workflow in Action Already Approved This causes the workflow process to continue to the next step. Here we require a higher level of approval because the item was manufactured from outside the member state of CERN. But e don’t need to disturb the department head in Athens again since she has already seen the document. So, the workflow continues – finally reaching the end where the relevant service is informed.

Workflow in Action XML Order – finally reaching the end where the relevant service is informed. This process works so well that 93% of all internal purchases are processed within 24hours.

Workflow in Action – finally reaching the end where the relevant service is informed. This process works so well that 93% of all internal purchases are processed within 24 hours.

Closing the loop for Budget Holders…

EDH Workflow Philosophy : Minimum Number of Signatures Maximum Level of Delegation Required signatures MUST be obtained Non-blocking signatures EDH will search for delegates in case of absence or timeouts Idea is to get a document through the system from start to finish as quickly as possible : Streamlined Electronic Procedures EDH is NOT a negotiating/decision aiding tool

Workflow Engine EDH Workflow is a commercial product We use ActiveVOS Based on BPEL standard (but about to migrate to BPMN in the near future) We use ActiveVOS Visual workflow design Robust server with a good track record Process versioning EDH supports two types of purchase orders: “DAI” and “MAG”. DAI has been the first electronic document in CERN (first appeared in 1992). MAG was initially developed to purchase goods from the internal stores (which currently contains over 50’000 of most frequently used at CERN items – from pens and portables to gas, metal and chemical products; the stores catalog is also a part of EDH and is available online). MAG was then expanded to handle orders to the biggest CERN suppliers via “business-to-business” mechanism.

Workflow Design IDE

How EDH helps meet the Challenge Reduce costs Reduce costs At least 40 FTE saved Increase efficiency Increase efficiency Reuse – cloning Streamline processes Streamline processes 93% < 24h, 71% < 30min Increase productivity Increase productivity < Admin, > Core activities Empower workforce Empower workforce Delegation of rights Maintain control Maintain control Enforcing business rules (Budget, Safety)

Benefits Reduced delays (1 → 2 instead of 8→14 days) Increased productivity No duplicate data entry, Cloning Transparency & Traceability Lean Authorization: Absence handling Roles based + Delegation Escalation Zero paper (environment friendly!)

EDH Statistics (documents/month) Here is the obligatory sales graph showing the growth of the application over the years. We now have over 10,000 registered users with 2,000 users per day. Over 150,000 documents per year. 1 electronic signature every 8 seconds. As you can see EDH really is a critical application in the day-to-day running of CERN.

EDH Statistics (signatures/month)

Damned Lies?

Thank You For More Information Rostislav.Titov@cern.ch Nicolas.Decrevel@cern.ch Jurgen.De.Jonghe@cern.ch

Common Business Objects EDH EDH Documents Catalog EDH Desktop Workflow Common Business Objects Signature Rights EDH Base Classes Foundation Interface Transfer Programs JVM Tools

BPEL Engines Evaluation Designer Links in designer XPATH tools Open source Java based Halt on fault and retry Debugging Process versioning Web based tools Active BPEL Oracle BPEL IBM WebSphere PXE Cape Clear Parasoft BPEL Maestro Vergil VCAB Twister / Agila BPEL IT Pearl BEA Weblogic workshop Important Criteria: Java Based ! Good Designer to improve developer's productivity! Including debugging…. Manageability of the processes Halt on fault/retry Process versioning (EDH has long very long running processes) Supported Partly supported Not supported

Front-End EDH Architecture CERN-made, Java only Reusable input objects 1-2 months to develop a new process Highly available (multiple Java VMs) Application Server Database Server Client Computer Application Server

Security HTTPS all data encrypted Both MD5 and 1024-bit RSA encryption for electronic signature